disease

In the Nanomedicine exhibition, four individual exhibit components highlight nanotechnology’s vast potential for diagnosing and treating disease, as well as its ability to help damaged tissue regrow. Test for thousands of diseases with a single nano-based chip, target tumor cells for treatment with nanoparticles in a tabletop game, and regrow severed nerve endings on nanoscale scaffolding. These exhibits were developed by the NISE Network; copies are located at the Museum of Science in Boston, OMSI in Oregon, and the Arkansas Discovery Network.

This exhibit introduces new ways of diagnosing and monitoring disease by using nanomaterials. Visitors conduct a lab test by select one of three sick patients and using a real pipette to add the patient’s blood sample to a glass slide (the GreeneChip). An on-screen animation explains what happens at the nanoscale, and the visitor is presented with a diagnosis.

This cart demo is about Biobarcodes, a nanomedical technology that allows for massively parallel testing for disease diagnosis. Visitors learn about antibodies, how each antibody binds to a unique protein, and how biobarcoding uses nanoparticles, antibodies, DNA and magnetism to detect diseases earlier than we could detect before. Visitors assemble a jigsaw puzzle that models how Biobarcodes™ work.

To create this scanning electron microscope image, gold nanoshells were dispersed in a drop of water which then dried on a glass microscope slide. The colors are due to selective scattering of light by nanoscale particles.

Gold Nanoshells have a variety of uses in nanotechnology, and especially in biomedical applications. Nanoshells like these may play important roles in new kinds of cancer treatments, disease detection, and imaging techniques.

Students will discover how many millions of signals their bodies give off every day, and how scientists are using those signals to build a new form of nano-medicine called “lab-on-a-chip” that could be used in the near future to diagnose and detect illnesses in patients before symptoms ever appear. Students will even get the chance to use their very own “lab-on-a-chip” to test and diagnose a patient and experience how useful this tiny technology will be in the future.
Duration: 60 minutes
Requirements: Requires a room with a sink and a whiteboard.

Participants identify key features that distinguish between cell types and then create specialized nano-capsules that seek and destroy diseases.

Nano Latch-n-Catch is a 60 minute, facilitator-led gallery laboratory activity during which participants diagnose patients by identifying key molecules that distinguish between cell types and then create specialized nanocapsules that seek and destroy diseases.

Pre and post activities are included to help prepare for the Nano Latch-n-Catch program as well as reinforce and offer extended learning of the concepts.
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